Medium, system, method and information processing device

ABSTRACT

An information processing device is configured to execute: performing game processing including movement of a plurality of characters in a virtual world; specifying one character as a specific character on the basis of predetermined conditions; judging whether there is commonality in movement of a plurality of non-specific characters other than the specific character; determining at least one of the characters for which it has been judged that there is commonality, as a preferential display character; and adjusting drawing related parameters so that the preferential display character is located in a predetermined area of a display image.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION

This application is based upon and claims the benefit of priority of theprior Japanese Patent Application No. JP2013-209276, filed on Oct. 4,2013, the entire contents of which are incorporated herein by reference.

FIELD

The present disclosure relates to a technique for adjusting a drawingrange of a virtual world.

BACKGROUND AND SUMMARY

Conventionally, in a game where characters move in a virtual world, avirtual camera for drawing (rendering) is moved according to themovement of a character so that the players can visually recognize thecharacter and the peripheral area thereof. If a plurality of charactersappear in a game, the virtual camera is controlled so that the playerscan visually recognize all of the plurality of characters.

However it is difficult to always confine all the characters for theplayer to visually recognize in a predetermined display area. Further,if a character important to a player moves out of a predetermineddisplay area, game progress becomes difficult for the player.

An aspect of the present disclosure is a program for causing a computerto execute: performing game processing including movement of a pluralityof characters in a virtual world; specifying one character out of theplurality of characters as a specific character, on the basis ofpredetermined conditions; judging whether there is commonality inmovement of a plurality of non-specific characters, which are theplurality of characters other than the specific character; determiningthe specific character as a preferential display character if thejudging does not judge that there is commonality, and determines atleast one of the non-specific characters as a preferential displaycharacter if the judging judges that there is commonality; and adjustingdrawing related parameters so that at least the preferential displaycharacter out of the plurality of characters is located in apredetermined area of a display image.

The present disclosure can be comprehended as an information processingdevice, a system, a method executed by a computer, or a program for acomputer to execute. The present disclosure can also be comprehended asa program stored in a recording medium that a computer, a device, amachine or the like can read. Here the recording medium that a computeror the like can read refers to a recording medium which stores suchinformation as data and programs electrically, magnetically, optically,mechanically or by chemical action, and which is read by a computer orthe like.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a diagram depicting a general hardware configuration of aninformation processing device according to an embodiment;

FIG. 2 is a diagram depicting a functional configuration of theinformation processing device according to the embodiment;

FIG. 3 is a flow chart depicting a flow of information processingaccording to the embodiment;

FIG. 4 is a flow chart A depicting a flow of game processing accordingto the embodiment;

FIG. 5 is a flow chart B depicting a flow of game processing accordingto the embodiment;

FIG. 6 is a diagram A depicting a display image of a game according tothe embodiment;

FIG. 7 is a diagram B depicting a display image of the game according tothe embodiment;

FIG. 8 is a flow chart A depicting a flow of drawing related parametersetting processing according to the embodiment;

FIG. 9 is a flow chart B depicting a flow of drawing related parametersetting processing according to the embodiment;

FIG. 10 is a drawing depicting a predetermined area that is set in adisplay image according to the embodiment;

FIG. 11 is a flow chart depicting a flow of preferential displaycharacter determining processing according to the embodiment;

FIG. 12 is a drawing C depicting a display image of the game accordingto the embodiment; and

FIG. 13 is a diagram depicting a velocity vector of each character in adisplay image according to the embodiment.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF NON-LIMITING EXAMPLE EMBODIMENTS

Embodiments of the present disclosure will now be described withreference to the drawings.

<Configuration of Device>

FIG. 1 is a diagram depicting a general hardware configuration of aninformation processing device 1 according to the embodiments. Theinformation processing device 1 is an information processing devicewhere a central processing unit (CPU) 11, a random access memory (RAM)12, a read only memory (ROM) 13, an auxiliary storage device 14, and anetwork interface 15 for communicating with the outside via a networkare electrically connected. The input devices 16A, 16B, 16C and 16D andan output device 17 are connected to the information processing device 1via an input/output interface 18. For the concrete hardwareconfiguration of the information processing device 1, composing elementsmay be omitted, replaced or added as necessary according to theembodiment.

The information processing device 1 is a game machine used by a player9. For the game machine, various types of devices can be used, such as astationary game machine, a portable game machine, a personal computer, asmartphone, a tablet, and a wearable electronic device, but the type ofthe device is not limited. The player 9 can play a game by allowing theinformation processing device 1 to execute game processing based on agame program. In this embodiment, a single information processing deviceis used as an example of a configuration to carry out the presentdisclosure, but the present disclosure may be realized as a systemhaving a plurality of devices which are interconnected via a network.

The CPU 11 is a central processing unit which controls each composingelement installed in the information processing device 1, such as a RAM12 and an auxiliary storage device 14, by processing commands and datadeveloped in the RAM 12 and the ROM 13. The RAM 12 is a main storagedevice and is controlled by the CPU 11, and various commands and dataare written to or read from the RAM 12. In other words, the CPU 11, theRAM 12 and the ROM 13 constitute a control unit 10 of the informationprocessing device 1.

The auxiliary storage device 14 is a non-volatile storage device, whereinformation that should be saved after turning the power of theinformation processing device 1 OFF, such as the operating system (OS)of the information processing device 1 that is loaded to the RAM 12,various programs for executing the processing to be described later, andvarious data used by the information processing device 1, are writtenand read. For the auxiliary storage device 14, an electrically erasableprogrammable ROM (EEPROM) and a hard disk drive (HDD) or the like can beused. Further, for the auxiliary storage device 14, a portable removablemedium that can be installed in the information processing device 1 maybe used. Examples of the portable medium is a memory card using EEPROM,a compact disc (CD), a digital versatile disc (DVD) and a Blu-ray® Disc(BD). A portable auxiliary storage device 14 and a non-portableauxiliary storage device 14 may be used in combination.

In this embodiment, the four input devices 16A, 16B, 16C and 16D, whichthe four players 9A, 9B, 9C and 9D can hold and operate respectively,are connected to the information processing device 1. But the number ofplayers 9 who can play a game and the number of input devices 16 are notlimited. Hereafter, any of the symbols A to D are attached todistinguish the four players 9 from each other, the four input devices16 from each other, and the four player characters 41 correspondingthereto from each other, and if distinguishment is not necessary, theplayer 9, the input device 16 and the player character 41 are simplyused without attached symbols.

For the input device 16, various devices can be used, such as a button,a lever, a keyboard, an acceleration sensor, an angular velocity sensorand a touch panel. The touch panel may be laminated onto a display(touch panel display). The player 9 can carry out input by touching thesurface of the touch panel using a touch pen, a finger or the like. Forthe touch panel, a resistance film type touch panel, electrostaticcapacitance type touch panel or any other type of touch panel may beused.

The output device 17 is a device for outputting an image, sound or thelike so as to be recognized by the player 9, and as an output device forimages, a display device 17 using liquid crystals or organic ELs forexample is used. In this embodiment, a display device 17 which displaysimages on a position that can be recognized by all four players 9A, 9B,9C and 9D will be primarily described as the output device 17.

FIG. 2 is a diagram depicting a general functional configuration of theinformation processing device 1 according to this embodiment. By the CPU11 interpreting and executing various programs developed in the RAM 12,the information processing device 1 according to this embodimentfunctions as an information processing device including a gameprocessing unit 21, a protecting unit 22, an action setting unit (movingdirection setting unit) 23, an obstacle detecting unit 24, a correctingunit 25, a protective state notifying unit 26, a cancelling unit 27, acancellation limiting unit 28, a display position calculating unit 29,an adjusting unit 30, an excluding unit 31, a specifying unit 32, aspecific state detecting unit 33, a judging unit 34, a preferentialdisplay character determining unit 35, a drawing unit 36 and anoutputting unit 37. In this embodiment, an example of the generalpurpose CPU 11 executing all functions is described, but a part or allof these functions may be implemented by one or a plurality of dedicatedprocessor(s). Each functional unit of the information processing device1 may exist on a cloud, or installed on a server 3 or the like. Thesefunctional units may be implemented not by one software program but by aplurality of software programs.

The game processing unit 21 performs game processing including actionsof a plurality of characters in the virtual world of the game (e.g.movement, attacking action and defensive action of the characters in thevirtual world) according to the player operation, by executing a gameprogram while reflecting the input operation from the players 9A to 9Dvia the input devices 16A, 16B, 16C and 16D in various parameters of thegame program. Normally the player operation via the input device 16influences the action of the player character 41 assigned to the inputdevice 16 and the player 9 thereof. In other words, the input carriedout by the player 9A by operating the input device 16A influences theaction of the player character 41A, and the input carried out by theplayer 9B by operating the input device 16B influences the action of theplayer character 41B. This is also the same in the case of the inputdevices 16C and 16D. In this embodiment, a game that uses athree-dimensional virtual space as the virtual world is described, but atwo-dimensional map may be used for the virtual world.

The protecting unit 22 sets at least one character to a protectivestate, where the character is protected from a danger in the game, whenpredetermined conditions are satisfied. For example, when a protectiveoperation by a player 9 is detected, the protecting unit 22 sets thecharacter 41 of the player who executed the protective operation to theprotective state.

The action setting unit (moving direction setting unit) 23 sets anaction (including a moving direction) of a character in the virtualworld of the game. Here an action of a character who is not in theprotective state is set according to the player operation that isinputted via the input device 16, but a moving direction of a characterwho is in the protective state is set to a direction in which anothercharacter located in the leading position exists, for example. Themoving direction of the protective state character, however, may be adirection to a character other than the leading character.

The obstacle detecting unit 24 detects a state when a character in theprotective state is overlapping with an object that obstructs movementof the character in the virtual world.

When the obstacle detecting unit 24 detects an obstacle state, thecorrecting unit 25 corrects the moving direction of the protective statecharacter in a direction to cancel the detected overlap with theobstacle (object in the virtual world). As the direction to cancel theoverlap with the obstacle, this embodiment uses a direction combining adirection toward outside the obstacle on the normal line of a boundarysurface closest to the protective target character, out of the boundarysources of the detected object, and a direction that is set by theaction setting unit 23. The “direction toward outside the obstacle onthe normal line of a boundary surface closest to the protective targetcharacter” is a direction in which an overlap with the obstacle-objectcan be cancelled in the shortest time, and a direction toward a positionclosest to the current position of the protective state character, outof the positions where the overlap with the obstacle object iscancelled. By using this direction as the correction direction, theprotective state character can cancel the overlap with the object in arelatively short moving distance and in a relatively short time.

The protective state notifying unit 26 allows the player 9 to recognizethat the character is in the protective state. The content outputted bythe protective state notifying unit 26 is different between the periodwhen the obstacle detecting unit 24 is executing detection and a periodwhen the obstacle detecting unit 24 is not executing detection. Theprotective state notifying unit 26 notifies the protective state to theplayer 9 by attaching a predetermined effect to the display of thecharacter, where an effect which makes it difficult to visuallyrecognize the character is attached while the obstacle detecting unit 24is executing detection, and an effect which makes it easy to visuallyrecognize the character is attached while the obstacle detecting unit 24is not executing detection.

The cancelling unit 27 cancels the protective state. For example, whenthe cancellation operation by the player 9 is detected, the cancellingunit 27 cancels the protective state.

The cancellation limiting unit 28 limits cancellation of the protectivestate by the cancelling unit 27 while the obstacle detecting unit 24 isexecuting detection.

The display position calculating unit 29 calculates the displaypositions of the objects including the characters when athree-dimensional virtual space is displayed using the display device17.

Referring to the display positions calculated by the display positioncalculating unit 29, the adjusting unit 30 adjusts drawing relatedparameters in the beginning so that all of the plurality of charactersenter a predetermined area 45 of the display image 40. If all of theplurality of characters cannot enter the predetermined area 45 even ifthe drawing related parameters are adjusted, the adjusting unit 30adjusts the drawing related parameters so that at least the preferentialdisplay character enters the predetermined area 45. In this case, thepredetermined area 45 is, for example, a predetermined area which issmaller than the entire display image 40, and is set in a positionincluding the center of the entire display image 40, for example. Theshape of the predetermined area 45 is not limited to a rectangle, asillustrated in this embodiment.

The excluding unit 31 excludes a character under a predetermined statein the game processing, from the adjustment targets by the adjustingunit 30. In this embodiment, a character which cannot be operated by theplayer is excluded from the adjustment targets by the adjusting unit 30.

The specifying unit 32 specifies a leading character which is closest tothe goal 42 of the game among a plurality of characters, based on thepositional relationship of the plurality of characters with respect tothe progress route 43 of the game in the virtual world, and specifiesthis leading character as a specific character. In this embodiment, theleading character is specified as the specific character, but thespecific character can be determined according to the conditions whichare set in advance based on the content of the game, and need not be theleading character. For example, in a game where a plurality of players 9cooperate with each other and a player 9 to be a leader has beendetermined, the leading player character 41 may be specified as thespecific character.

The specific state detecting unit 33 detects a game state which requirespreferential display of a specific character. For example, when thespecific character is within a predetermined range from a goal 42 of thegame, the specific state detecting unit 33 detects a state whichrequires preferential display of the specific character.

The judging unit 34 judges whether there is commonality in actions,which are different from that of the specific character and areperformed by a plurality of non-specific characters which are thecharacters other than the specific character. To determine suchcommonality, the judging unit 34 compares a first evaluation valueincluding an integrated value of values on the basis of an action of thespecific character and a value on the basis of an action of anon-specific character that is similar to the action of the specificcharacter, and a second evaluation value including an integrated valueof values on the basis of actions of non-specific characters that arenot similar to the action of the specific character, using values on thebasis of respective actions of the plurality of characters, so as tojudge the greater/lesser of the evaluation values.

In concrete terms, using respective velocity values of a plurality ofcharacters moving away from a predetermined point in the display image40, the judging unit 34 compares the first evaluation value includingthe integrated value of values generated by weighting the velocity ofthe specific character in a predetermined way, and a velocity of anon-specific character of which moving direction is similar to thespecific character and a second evaluation value including an integratedvalue of a velocity of values of the non-specific characters of whichmoving directions are not similar to the specific character, so as tojudge the greater/lesser of the evaluation values.

The preferential display character determining unit 35 determines thespecific character as the preferential display character if the judgingunit 34 does not judge that there is commonality, and determines atleast that any one of the non-specific characters as the preferentialdisplay character if the judging unit 34 judges that there iscommonality. However if the specific state detecting unit 33 detects thestate which requires preferential display of the specific character, thepreferential display character determining unit 35 determines thespecific character as the preferential display character. When any oneof the non-specific characters is determined as the preferential displaycharacter, the preferential display character determining unit 35determines the preferential display character by comparing the values onthe basis of the respective actions of the plurality of non-specificcharacters.

The drawing unit 36 draws (renders) the virtual world of the gameaccording to the drawing related parameters that are set or adjusted.

The outputting unit 37 outputs the image drawn by the drawing unit 36via the input/output interface 18 for the display by the display device17.

<Processing Flow>

A processing flow to be executed in this embodiment will now bedescribed. The concrete processing content and the processing sequencedepicted in the flow chart of this embodiment are examples of carryingout the present disclosure. The concrete processing content and theprocessing sequence may be appropriately selected in accordance with theembodiment of the present disclosure.

FIG. 3 is a flow chart depicting the flow of the information processingaccording to this embodiment. The processing depicted in this flow chartis executed in the information processing device 1 triggered by theinstruction to start the game processing. The control unit 10 of theinformation processing device 1 loads a game program desired by theplayer 9 to the RAM 12 by reading from the auxiliary storage device 14or downloading via a network, and executes this program, whereby theinformation processing to be described is executed. The game accordingto this embodiment is a game that is processed at 60 frames/second, andthe processing depicted in FIG. 3 is processing that is executedrepeatedly for each frame until the end of the game (step S005).

In step S001, the game processing is executed. The game processing unit21 progresses the game processing according to the player operation thatis received through the input devices 16A to 16D. The state of progressof the game is managed using the data (e.g. flags, parameters) in thegame program. The game according to this embodiment is a game oftargeting a goal 42 at each stage, while a plurality of charactersperform actions including movement according to the player operation ina two-dimensional or a three-dimensional virtual world. The content,rules or the like of the game however are just examples, and are notlimited to this embodiment. The game according to this embodiment is amulti-player game, and a plurality of characters 41A to 41D are assignedto any one of the players 9A to 9D respectively. Each of the players 9Ato 9D instructs an assigned character in the game by operating theassigned input device 16A to 16D.

In the game according to this embodiment, a character enters aprotective state where the character is protected from a danger in thegame when a predetermined protection start condition is satisfied. Inthis embodiment, if a character enters the protective state, thecharacter is not influenced by an enemy attack, a trap, a fall or thelike in the game until the protective state is cancelled. Further, inthis embodiment, the character in the protective state automaticallyfollows the leading character in the game, even if the player 9 does notoperate this character. The way of determining the leading characterwill be described later. Details on the game processing related to stepS001 will be described with reference to FIG. 4 and FIG. 5. Thenprocessing advances to step S002.

In step S002, the drawing related parameter setting processing isexecuted. The control unit 10 sets various parameters used for drawing(rendering) the virtual world of the game, based on such information asthe positions of the plurality of characters. In the example of the gamein this embodiment, a three-dimensional virtual space is used as thevirtual world of the game, and the three-dimensional virtual space isrendered as a two-dimensional image, hence various parameters that areset here are parameters to determine a position, an inclination, anangle of view (imaging range) or the like in the virtual space of thevirtual camera for imaging objects disposed in the virtual space.However as mentioned above, a two-dimensional map may be used as avirtual world of the game. In this case, the parameters for drawing areparameters for determining a display range in the two-dimensional map.

According to this embodiment, the game is a multi-player game in which aplurality of players 9 play while looking at the single display image40, hence the drawing related parameters are set so that all the playercharacters 41 are drawn in a predetermined area 45, which is set in onedisplay image 40 as much as possible. Details on the drawing relatedparameter setting processing in step S002 will be described later withreference to FIG. 8 and FIG. 9. Then processing advances to step S003.

In step S003 and step S004, the drawing processing and the displayprocessing are executed. The drawing unit 36 draws (renders) the virtualworld according to the drawing related parameters that were set in stepS002, and generates the display image 40 (step S003). Then theoutputting unit 37 outputs the generated display image 40 via theinput/output interface 18 to allow the display device 17 to display theimage (step S004). Receiving the display image 40, the player 9 inputs anew instruction via the input device 16, and progresses the game. Thenprocessing advances to step S005.

In step S005, it is judged whether the game ends or not. If the gamedoes not end (the game continues), processing advances to step S001. Inother words, the processing depicted in this flow chart is executedrepeatedly for each frame until the game ends. If the game ends, theprocessing depicted in this flow chart ends.

FIG. 4 and FIG. 5 are flow charts depicting the flow of the gameprocessing according to this embodiment. As mentioned above, theprocessing depicted in these flow charts is to further describe the gameprocessing in step S001 in the information processing depicted in FIG.3. The game processing depicted in FIG. 4 and FIG. 5 is executed foreach player character 41 that appears in the game. In other words, iffour players 9A, 9B, 9C and 9D are playing the game, the game processingin FIG. 4 and FIG. 5 is executed four times in each frame.

Player operation input is received in step S101. The informationprocessing device 1 receives the operation input by the player 9 via theinput device 16 assigned to each player 9, and the control unit 10stores the player operation via the input device 16 corresponding to theprocessing target character as an instruction to the character. Thenprocessing advances to step S102.

In step S102, it is judged whether the character is in the protectivestate. The control unit 10 judges whether the processing targetcharacter is in the protective state where the character is protectedfrom a danger in the game. In concrete terms, a flag to indicate whetherthe character is in the protective state or not is set for eachcharacter in advance, and this flag is referred to for this judgment,for example. The judgment method, however, is not limited to thisexample. If the target character is in the protective state, processingadvances to step S106. If the target character is not in the protectivestate, on the other hand, processing advances to step S103.

FIG. 6 is a diagram depicting a display image 40 of a game according tothis embodiment. Four player characters 41A, 41B, 41C and 41D, who movetoward a goal 42 indicated by a flag in the virtual world, are displayedon the display image 40 in FIG. 6. The protective state notifying unit26 attaches an effect to a character in the protective state to letplayers 9 know that this character is in the protective state. In thisembodiment, a sphere (bubble) 44 enclosing the character 41D in theprotective state is displayed as an effect to indicate the protectivestate. This sphere 44 is transparent, and the character enclosed by thesphere 44 can be seen by the players 9.

In step S103, it is judged whether a predetermined protection startcondition is satisfied. The protecting unit 22 judges whether any one ofthe protection start conditions is satisfied, referring to the variousparameters used in the game processing and the content of the playeroperation received in step S101. For example, the protection startconditions that are set in this embodiment are:

(1) a predetermined time has elapsed since the target characters leavesthe display image 40;(2) a character who was sidelined by an enemy attack, a trap, a fall orthe like is revived;(3) target character moved away from the leading character for apredetermined distance or more; and(4) player operation to instruct the start of protection is inputted ina state where the target character is on the ground (is not in the air).The protection start conditions, however, are not limited to theexamples of this embodiment. If it is judged that a protection startcondition is satisfied, processing advances to step S104. And if it isjudged that no protection start condition is satisfied, processingadvances to step S105.

In step S104, the target character who satisfies a predeterminedprotection start condition is set to the protective state. If it isjudged that a protection start condition is satisfied in step S103, theprotecting unit 22 sets the target character to the protective state.This setting is carried out by setting a flag to TRUE, which indicatesthe protective state, for example. As mentioned above, in thisembodiment, the character in the protective state is not influenced byan enemy attack, a trap, a fall or any other danger during the game. Thecharacter in the protective state automatically follows the leadingcharacter during the game. If the target character is set to theprotective state, the processing depicted in this flow chart ends.

In step S105, an action of the character is set according to the playeroperation. The action setting unit 23 sets an action of the targetcharacter according to the player operation received in step S101. Theaction of the character includes movement (including jumping) of thecharacter in the virtual world of the game, an attack operation, adefensive operation and use of an item. If the action is a movement ofthe character, the game processing determines the moving direction andthe moving velocity of the character on the basis of the playeroperation and the parameters of the target character. The movingdirection and the moving velocity are expressed as a velocity vector inthe later mentioned preferential display character determinationprocessing (see FIG. 11). If the action of the target character is set,processing advances to step S115.

In step S106, it is judged whether the protective state of the charactercan be cancelled (whether the character can return to the normal state).The cancellation limiting unit 28 judges whether the target characterwho was judged as in the protective state in step S102 is in a situationwhere the protective state can be cancelled. In this embodiment, it isjudged that the protective state can be cancelled when the position ofthe target character is not overlapping with the object (obstacle)obstructing the movement of the character in the virtual world of thegame. This is because, even if the protective state is cancelled in astate of overlapping with the obstacle, the character cannot be moved bythe obstruction of the obstacle, or the character is immediately damagedand defeated. If it is judged that the protective state cannot becancelled (character cannot return to the normal state), processingadvances to step S107. If it is judged that the protective state can becancelled (the character can return to the normal state), processingadvances to step S108.

In step S107, the color of the sphere 44 enclosing the target characteris set to a color to indicate that cancellation of the protective stateis disabled. In response to the judgment in step S106 that theprotective state of the target character cannot be cancelled, theprotective state notifying unit 26 sets the color of the sphere 44enclosing the target character to a color of which degree oftransparency is low, so as to notify the player 9 that the protectivestate cannot be cancelled. For this color, a color close to a themecolor (a unique color predetermined for each character) of the charactermay be used (e.g. red if the character is wearing red clothing). If acolor close to the theme color of the character is used for the color ofthe sphere 44, the player 9 can discern the character in the sphere 44even if the character becomes invisible in the sphere 44 which becameless transparent. Then processing advances to step S112.

In step S108, it is determined whether a predetermined protectioncancellation condition is satisfied (target character returns to thenormal state). The information processing device 1 judges whether anyone of protection cancellation conditions is satisfied, referring tovarious parameters used in the game processing and the content of theplayer operation received in step S101. For example, the protectioncancellation conditions in this embodiment are:

(1) another character performed an action to cancel the protective state(breaking the sphere 44) to the character in the protective state; and(2) a player operation to instruct to cancel protection is inputted.The protection cancellation conditions, however, are not limited to theexamples of this embodiment. If it is judged that a protectioncancellation condition is satisfied, processing advances to step S109.If it is judged that no protection cancellation condition is satisfied,processing advances to step S110.

In step S109, the protective state of the target character who satisfiedthe protection cancellation condition is cancelled (target characterreturns to the normal state). If it is judged that the protectioncancellation condition is satisfied, the cancelling unit 27 cancels theprotective state of the target character. The protective state iscancelled by such a method as setting a flag to indicate the protectivestate to FALSE. If the protective state of the target character iscancelled, the processing depicted in this flow chart ends.

In step S110, the color of the sphere 44 enclosing the target characteris set to a color to indicate that cancellation of the protective stateis enabled. In response to the judgment in step S106 that the protectivestate of the target character can be cancelled, the protective statenotifying unit 26 sets the color of the sphere 44 enclosing the targetcharacter to a color of which degree of transparency is high, so as tonotify the player 9 that the protective state can be cancelled. Thenprocessing advances to step S112.

In step S112, the moving direction of the character in the protectivestate is set. In this embodiment, the character in the protective stateautomatically moves regardless the player operation. While movement ofthe character in the normal state is interrupted by an obstacle in thevirtual world, the character in the protective state can move past anobstacle without being interrupted by it. The action setting unit 23sets the moving direction of the character in the protective state tothe direction 46 toward the leading character on the basis of theposition of the character in the protective state in the virtual worldand the position of the leading character. In the example in FIG. 6, themoving direction of the character 41D in the protective state is set tothe direction 46 toward the character 41, which is the leadingcharacter. This is because the protective state is cancelled by theleading character (in this embodiment, the sphere 44 to indicate theprotective state is shattered by the leading character), and the gamerestarts from a position close to the leading character. The way ofdetermining the leading character will be described later with referenceto FIG. 12. Then processing advances to step S113.

In step S113, it is judged that the character in the protective state isoverlapping an obstacle. The obstacle detecting unit 24 judges whetherthe position of the target character in the protective state isoverlapping with an object (obstacle) to obstruct the movement of thecharacter in the virtual world of the game. If it is judged that thecharacter in the protective state is overlapping with the obstacle,processing advances to step S114. If it is judged that the character inthe protective state is not overlapping with the obstacle, processingadvances to step S115.

In step S114, the moving direction of the character in the protectivestate is corrected. If it is judged that the character in the protectivestate is overlapping with the obstacle, the correcting unit 25 correctsthe moving direction of the target character in the protective state toa direction to escape the state of overlapping with the object mostquickly (this is direction 48, which is described later with referenceto FIG. 7). This is because it may take time to enter the state wherethe protective state can be cancelled, if the target characteroverlapping with the obstacle moves toward the leading character.

FIG. 7 is a diagram depicting a display image 40 of a game according tothis embodiment. In this embodiment, the correcting unit 25 corrects themoving direction of the target character in the protective state to acomposite direction 48, combining the direction 46 to the leadingcharacter which was set in step S112 and the normal line direction 47.Here the normal line direction 47 is a direction toward outside theobstacle on a normal line of a boundary surface closest to the targetcharacter (boundary surface between an obstacle which disables movementof the character and a space where movement of the character isenabled). The direction of correction, however, is not limited to thecomposite direction 48. For example, the moving direction of thecharacter in the protective state may be corrected simply in the normalline direction 47. Then processing advances to step S115.

In step S115, action processing of the character is executed. The gameprocessing unit 21 executes processing for the target character toperform an action, such as movement, in the virtual world, according tothe action (including movement) of the target character which was set instep S105, step S112 or step S114. The result of the processing is drawnin the drawing processing in step S003, which is executed after theprocessing depicted in this flow chart ends, and is displayed in stepS004 (see FIG. 3). Then the processing depicted in this flow chart ends,and processing advances to step S002 in FIG. 3.

FIG. 8 and FIG. 9 are flow charts depicting the flow of the drawingrelated parameter setting processing according to this embodiment. Asmentioned above, the processing depicted in these flow charts is tofurther describe the drawing related parameter setting processing instep S002 in the information processing in FIG. 3.

In step S201, a target player character 41 for which the drawing relatedparameters are adjusted is determined. The excluding unit 31 excludescharacters in a predetermined state, such as a character which was lost(died) in the game, and a character in the protective state, from thetargets of adjusting the drawing related parameters, and sets the othercharacters as targets of adjustment of the drawing related parameters.Then processing advances to step S202.

In step S202, the display position and the display size of the playercharacter 41 to be the target of adjusting the drawing relatedparameters are calculated. The display position calculating unit 29calculates the display position and the display size of the adjustmenttarget character determined in step S201 in the display image 40, in thecase when the virtual world is drawn according to the currently setdrawing related parameters. In this embodiment, actual drawing is notperformed, but the display position and the display size according tothe drawing related parameters are calculated. However, actual drawingprocessing may be executed in order to acquire the display position andthe display size. In this embodiment, the display position and thedisplay size are calculated after the adjustment target character isdetermined, but the adjustment target character may be determined aftercalculating the display position and the display size for all the playercharacters 41A, 41B, 41C and 41D first. (In other words, the processingsequence of step S201 and step S202 may be reversed.) If the virtualworld is a three-dimensional virtual space, the display positioncalculating unit 29 calculates the display position and the display sizein the two-dimensional display image 40. Then processing advances tostep S203.

In step S203, it is determined whether all the adjustment targetcharacters are in a predetermined area 45. The adjusting unit 30 refersto the display position calculated in step S202, and judges whether allthe adjustment target characters are located in the predetermined area45 defined in the display image 40.

FIG. 10 is a diagram depicting a predetermined area 45 that is set inthe display image 40 according to this embodiment. In the display image40 in FIG. 10, four player characters 41A, 41B, 41C and 41D, who move inthe virtual world, are displayed. Here the frame indicated by the brokenline is a frame indicating the predetermined area 45 described above,and is not actually drawn in the display image 40 (therefore is notdisplayed). The adjusting unit 30 adjusts the drawing related parametersso that the characters enter into this frame (predetermined area 45). Inthis embodiment, an area, which is smaller than the entire display image40 and which is set in a position including the center of the entiredisplay image 40, is set as the predetermined area 45. By setting thisarea, not only the characters but also the state around the characterscan be appropriately displayed so that the players 9 can recognize theentire picture.

The predetermined area 45, however, is not limited to the example ofthis embodiment. For example, the predetermined area 45 may be theentire display image 40. In the example of this embodiment, the centerof the display image 40 and the center of the predetermined area 45match, but the center of the display image 40 and the center of thepredetermined area 45 may not match. For example, in the case of a gamewhere the scroll direction is predetermined, the center of thepredetermined area 45 may be behind the center of the display image 40,so that more space is created in the advancing direction of thecharacters.

If it is judged that all the adjustment target characters are within thepredetermined area 45 as a result of the judgment by the adjusting unit30, processing advances to step S204. And if it is not judged that allthe adjustment target characters is within the predetermined area 45 (ifit is judged that any one of the adjustment target characters is outsidethe predetermined area 45), processing advances to step S207.

In step S204, the display size of the adjustment target character ischecked and it is determined whether the display size is smaller than athreshold. The adjusting unit 30 compares the display size of theadjustment target character calculated in step S202 with a predeterminedthreshold. If it is judged that the display sizes of all the adjustmenttarget characters are the threshold or more, the drawing relatedparameter setting processing depicted in this flow chart ends, andprocessing advances to step S003 in FIG. 3. On the other hand, if it isjudged that the display size of any one of the adjustment targetcharacters is less than the threshold, then processing advances to stepS205.

In step S205, it is judged whether the drawing related parameters can beadjusted. In response to the judgement in step S204 that the displaysize of any one of the adjustment target characters is less than thethreshold, the adjusting unit 30 refers to the current setting contentof the drawing related parameters, and judges whether various parametershave reached the limit of the setting tolerance which is set in advance.In this embodiment, the inclination of the virtual camera is adjusted inorder to adjust the display size. Therefore the adjusting unit 30 refersto the current inclination of the virtual camera, and judges whether thefixation point of the virtual camera determined by the currentinclination is directed to the adjustment target character, in otherwords, whether the adjustment target character can be drawn in thecenter of the display screen. If the parameters have reached the limitof the setting tolerance (that is, if the fixation point of the virtualcamera has already been directed to the adjustment target character),the processing depicted in this flow chart ends, judging that thedisplay size of the adjustment target character can no longer beincreased by adjusting the parameters. If the parameters have notreached the limit of the setting tolerance (adjustment is possible), onthe other hand, processing advances to step S206.

In step S206, the drawing related parameters are adjusted. If it isjudged that the display size of any one of the adjustment targetcharacters is less than the threshold in step S204, and if it is judgedthat the parameters can be adjusted in step S205, the adjusting unit 30adjusts the inclination of the virtual camera for drawing so that thefixation point moves closer to the adjustment target character. This isbecause if the display size of the player character 41 becomes toosmall, the player 9 has difficulty in visually recognizing the character41 even if the character 41 is displayed in the display image 40. If theinclination of the virtual camera is changed, the processing returns tostep S202, since any one of the adjustment target characters may bedisposed outside of the predetermined area 45.

In step S207, it is judged whether the drawing related parameters can beadjusted. In response to the judgment in step S203 that any one of theadjustment target characters is outside the predetermined area 45, theadjusting unit 30 refers to the current setting content of the drawingrelated parameters, and judges whether the various parameters havereached the limit of the setting tolerance which is set in advance. Thesetting tolerance is a predetermined range of parameter values that canbe set, such as a position, an inclination and an angle of view of thevirtual camera and for example a setting tolerance that is determined sothat the target character does not enter an area inside the obstacle inthe virtual space, and a setting tolerance that is determined so thatthe virtual camera is not apart from the character exceeding apredetermined distance, are set. If any one of the parameters reaches alimit of the setting tolerance, processing advances to step S209,judging that all the adjustment target characters cannot be displayed inthe predetermined area 45 by adjusting the parameters. If no parametershave reached the setting tolerance, on the other hand, processingadvances to step S208.

The drawing related parameters are adjusted in step S208 so that all theadjustment target characters are disposed within the display area. If noparameters have reached the limit of the setting tolerance, theadjusting unit 30 adjusts the drawing related parameters so that thedisplay positions of all the adjustment target characters are disposedwithin the predetermined area 45. The drawing related parametersadjusted here include parameters for determining the position,inclination, and angle of view of the virtual camera in the virtualspace, and the adjusting unit 30 performs the adjustment to change theposition, inclination and angle of view of the virtual camera to thedirection toward a character disposed outside the predetermined area 45,for example. Then processing advances to step S202. This is because anyone of the adjustment target characters may be disposed outside thepredetermined area 45 by adjusting the parameters. In other words, theadjustment processing in step S208 is executed repeatedly until eitherall of the characters are disposed within the predetermined frame, orprocessing advances to the preferential character determinationprocessing, which will be described later. However an upper limit may beset for the number of repeats.

In step S209, the preferential display character determinationprocessing is executed. In response to the judgment in step S207 thatall the adjustment characters cannot be displayed in the predeterminedarea 45, the preferential display character determining unit 35determines a character which is preferentially displayed in thepredetermined area 45. Details on the preferential display characterdetermination processing related to step S209 will be described laterwith reference to FIG. 11. Then processing advances to step S210.

In step S210, the drawing related parameters are adjusted so that thepreferential display character is disposed in the predetermined area 45.The adjusting unit 30 adjusts the drawing related parameters so that thepreferential display character display position determined in thepreferential display character determination processing in step S209 isdisposed in the predetermined area 45. The drawing related parametersadjusted in this step is the same as in step S208. Then processingadvances to step S211.

In step S211, the display position and the display size of thepreferential display character are calculated. The display positioncalculating unit 29 calculates the display position and the display sizeof the preferential display character in the display image 40 in thecase when the virtual world is drawn according to the drawing relatedparameters adjusted in step S210. Details on the calculation processingis generally the same as the processing described in step S202. Thenprocessing advances to step S212.

In step S212, it is judged whether the preferential display character islocated in the predetermined area 45. Referring to the display positioncalculated in step S211, the adjusting unit 30 judges whether thepreferential display character is located in the predetermined area 45defined in the display image 40. If it is judged that the preferentialdisplay character is located in the predetermined area 45 as a result ofthe judgment, processing advances to step S213. If it is judged that thepreferential display character is disposed outside the predeterminedarea 45, processing advances to step S210. In other words, theadjustment processing in step S210 is executed repeatedly until thepreferential display character is disposed within the predeterminedframe. However an upper limit may be set for the number of repeats.

In step S213, the display size of the preferential display character ischecked, and it is judged whether the display size is smaller than thethreshold. Details on the processing are generally the same as thedescription in step S204. If it is determined that the display size ofthe preferential display character is the threshold or more, the drawingrelated parameter setting processing depicted in this flow chart ends,and processing advances to step S003 in FIG. 3. If it is judged that thedisplay size of the preferential display character is smaller than thethreshold, on the other hand, processing advances to step S214.

In step S214, it is judged whether the drawing related parameters can beadjusted. Details on the processing are generally the same as thedescription in step S207. If the parameters have reached the limit ofthe setting tolerance, the processing depicted in this flow chart ends.If the parameters have not been reached the limit of the settingtolerance (the parameters can be adjusted), on the other hand,processing advances to step S215.

In step S215, the drawing related parameters are adjusted. Details onthe processing are generally the same as the description in step S206.If the inclination of the virtual camera is changed, processing returnsto step S211.

In this way, the processing from step S210 to step S215 is repeated asrequired, and the processing depicted in this flow chart ends when thepreferential display character is disposed within the predetermined area45, and the display size of the preferential display character becomes athreshold or more.

FIG. 11 is a flow chart depicting the flow of the preferential displaycharacter determination processing according to this embodiment. Asmentioned above, the processing depicted in this flow chart is tofurther describe the preferential display character determinationprocessing in step S209 in the information processing in FIG. 9.

In step S301, a specific character is determined. The specifying unit 32determines a leading character according to the position of the playercharacter 41, and sets the leading character as the specific characterin the subsequent processing. In this embodiment, the subsequent processwill be described based on the assumption that the character 41A isdetermined as the specific character. Then processing advances to stepS302.

FIG. 12 is a diagram depicting a display image 40 of a game according tothis embodiment. The bold broken line with an arrow extending toward thegoal 42 is a progress route 43 of the game, which is predetermined inthe virtual world, and is not drawn (therefore is not displayed) on thedisplay image 40. The player character 41 need not progress along theprogress route 43, but the progress route 43 is referred to when thedegree of progress (closeness to the goal 42) of the player character 41is calculated. In this example, the leading character is determined onthe basis of the progress route 43. In concrete terms, the specifyingunit 32 calculates points 49A to 49D on the progress route 43 closest toeach character (contact point of a circle around each character and theprogress route 43), and determines a character of which point 49A to 49Dis closest to the goal 42 on the progress route 43 as the leadingcharacter (character 41A in the case of the example in FIG. 12). Themethod for determining the leading character, however, is not limited tothe method of this embodiment. For example, a character of whichdistance from the goal 42 is closest may be determined as the leadingcharacter.

In step S302, it is judged whether the game is under a predeterminedstate. The specific state detecting unit 33 refers to various parametersused for the game processing and the positions of the characters in thevirtual world, so as to detect that the game is in any one of thepredetermined states. The predetermined states are, for example:

(1) the specific character is within a predetermined range from the goal42 (approaching the goal 42); and(2) the game does not progress unless all the characters advances in asame direction (e.g. characters are climbing up a ladder).If it is detected that the game is in any one of the predeterminedstates, processing advances to step S308, and the specific character isdetermined as the preferential display character (step S308). If it isnot detected that the game is in the predetermined state, processingadvances to step S303.

In step S303, the velocity vectors of the respective player characters41A, 41B, 41C and 41D are acquired. The control unit 10 converts themoving direction and the moving velocity of each of the playercharacters 41A, 41B, 41C and 41D in the virtual world of the gamedetermined in step S105 in FIG. 5 into the moving direction and themoving velocity of each of the player characters 41A, 41B, 41C and 41Don the display image 40. Here the moving direction and the movingvelocity on the display image 40 are expressed by a vector on atwo-dimensional coordinate system, where the x axis and the y axis aredisposed on a plane of the display image 40, of which origin is apredetermined point in the display image 40 (the center of the displayimage 40 that is also the center of the predetermined area 45 in thisembodiment).

FIG. 13 is a diagram depicting a velocity vector of each character onthe display image 40 according to this embodiment. Four playercharacters 41A, 41B, 41C and 41D who move in the virtual world aredisplayed on the display image 40 in FIG. 13. The frame indicated by thebroken line here is a frame to indicate the predetermined area 45, justlike FIG. 10, and is not drawn on the display image 40. The x and ycoordinate axes, of which origin is the center of the predetermined area45 and the display position and the velocity vector of each character,are shown in FIG. 13. (The coordinate axes and the velocity vectors arenot drawn (there not displayed). For the display position of eachcharacter, the position calculated in step S202 can be used. A vectorhas an x component and a y component. In the case of the example in FIG.13,

character 41A: the coordinates of the display portion are a positive xcoordinate and a positive y coordinate, and the velocity vector has apositive x component and a positive y component;character 41B: the coordinates of the display position are a negative xcoordinate and a positive y coordinate, and the velocity vector has apositive x component and a positive y component;character 41C: the coordinates of the display position are a negative xcoordinate and a negative y coordinate, and the velocity vector has anegative x component and a positive y component; andcharacter 41D: the coordinates of the display position are a negative xcoordinate and a negative y coordinate, and the velocity vector has anegative x component and a negative y component.Then processing advances to step S304.

In step S304, a component that moves away from the origin of thecoordinate system is extracted. The control unit 10 extracts componentshaving a velocity that moves away from a predetermined point in thedisplay image 40, that is, the origin of the coordinate system (thecenter point of the predetermined area 45 in this embodiment), out ofthe components of the velocity vector acquired in step S303. In concreteterms, a component of the velocity vector of which positive/negativematches with that of the display position of the character is extractedfor the x axis and the y axis respectively. In the case of the examplein FIG. 13,

character 41A: a positive x component and a positive y component areextracted out of the velocity vector, since the coordinates of thedisplay position are a positive x coordinate and a positive ycoordinate;character 41B: a positive y component is extracted out of the velocityvector since the coordinates of the display position are a negative xcoordinate and a positive y coordinate;character 41C: a negative x component is extracted out of the velocityvector since the coordinates of the display position are a negative xcoordinate and a negative y coordinate; andcharacter 41D: a negative x component and a negative y component areextracted out of the velocity vector since the coordinates of thedisplay position are a negative x coordinate and a negative ycoordinate.

In other words, in step S304, a component having velocity to approachthe center point of the predetermined area 45 (a component indicated bythe broken line in FIG. 13) is excluded from the components of eachvelocity vector. This is because this component is a component thatindicates movement that remains in the currently drawn range, and cantherefore be ignored in adjustment of the drawing related parameters(adjustment of the virtual camera). By excluding these components,components that indicate movement to the direction away from thecurrently drawn range, which must be focused on to adjust the drawingrelated parameters, can be extracted. Then processing advances to stepS305.

In step S305, a first evaluation value, which indicates a degree ofmovement toward the moving direction of the specific character, iscalculated for the plurality of characters 41. The control unit 10weights each component of the velocity vector of the specific character(multiplies the velocity vector by 1.5 in this embodiment), out of thecomponents of the velocity vectors extracted in step S304. Then out ofthe components of the velocity vectors of the other player characters 41extracted in step S304, the control unit 10 adds the component in thesame direction as that of the specific character (y component of thecharacter 41B in the case of the example in FIG. 13) to each weightedcomponent of the velocity vector of the specific character. The judgingunit 34 regards the value acquired like this as the first evaluationvalue. In the case of the example in FIG. 13, the first evaluation valueis a velocity vector expressed by “x component=x component of character41A*1.5” and “y component=y component of character 41A*1.5+y componentof character 41B”. Then processing advances to step S306.

In step S306, a second evaluation value, which indicates a degree ofmovement toward the moving direction which is different from that of thespecific character, is calculated for the plurality of characters 41.Out of the components of the velocity vectors of the other playercharacters 41 extracted in step S304, the control unit 10 integrates(sums up) a component in a different direction from that of the specificcharacter (x component of the character 41C and x component and ycomponent of the character 41D in the case of the example in FIG. 13).The judging unit 34 regards the value acquired like this as the secondevaluation value. In the case of the example in FIG. 13, the secondevaluation value is the velocity vector expressed by “x component=xcomponent of the character 41C+x component of the character 41D” and “ycomponent=y component of the character 41D”. Then processing advances tostep S307.

In step S307, it is judged whether the first evaluation value is thesame as or greater than the second evaluation value. The judging unit 34compares the first evaluation value that is calculated in step S305 andindicates the degree of movement toward the moving direction of thespecific character, and the second evaluation value that is calculatedin step S306 and indicates the degree of movement toward a movingdirection which is different from that of the specific character. If itis judged that the first evaluation value is the same as or greater thanthe second evaluation value, processing advances to step S308. If it isjudged that the first evaluation value is less than the secondevaluation value, on the other hand, processing advances to step S309.

In step S308, the specific character is determined as the preferentialdisplay character. If it is judged that the first evaluation value isthe same as or greater then the second evaluation value, thepreferential display character determining unit 35 determines thespecific character as the preferential display character.

Thereby when a plurality of player characters 41, other than thespecific character, are performing actions which are different from thatof the specific character, it can be judged whether there is commonalityin these actions (movement in this embodiment). The velocity vectorcomponents of the specific character are weighted with a predeterminedvalue (1.5 times in this example), hence if another character starts tomove toward a direction which is different from that of the specificcharacter, it is highly probable that the specific character becomes thepreferential display character, except in the case when the movingvelocity of the specific character is extremely slow. However if aplurality of other characters start to move toward directions which aredifferent from that of the specific character and these movingdirections are similar, then the commonality of the movements of theplurality of other characters increases the second evaluation value,which increases the probability that a character other than the specificcharacter becomes the preferential display character. If a plurality ofother characters (e.g. characters 41C and 41D) are moving in differentdirections from that of the specific character, but the movingdirections of these characters are completely different from each other(the moving direction of the character 41C and the moving direction ofthe character 41D are different), then the second evaluation value doesnot increase.

In step S309 and step S310, a character, of which moving velocity is thefastest among the characters other than the specific character, isdetermined as the preferential display character. In response to thejudgment in step S307 that there is commonality in the actions of aplurality of player characters 41 other than the specific characterswhich are different from the action of the specific character, thepreferential display character determining unit 35 determines one of theplurality of player characters 41 other than the specific character asthe preferential display character. In concrete terms, the preferentialdisplay character determining unit 35 compares the velocity vectors of aplurality of player characters 41 other than the specific character(step S309), and determines a character having the greatest velocityvector as the preferential display character (step S310). Then theprocessing depicted in this flow chart ends, and processing advances tostep S210 in FIG. 9.

The embodiment described above is merely an example of carrying out thepresent disclosure, and does not limit the present disclosure to theconcrete configuration described above. Any appropriate concreteconfiguration in accordance with the embodiment may be used to carry outthe present disclosure.

What is claimed is:
 1. A computer-readable non-transitory medium storinga program for causing a computer to execute: performing game processingincluding movement of a plurality of characters in a virtual world;specifying one character out of the plurality of characters as aspecific character, on the basis of predetermined conditions; judgingwhether there is commonality in movement of a plurality of non-specificcharacters, which are the plurality of characters other than thespecific character; determining the specific character as a preferentialdisplay character if the judging does not judge that there iscommonality, and determines at least one of the non-specific charactersas a preferential display character if the judging judges that there iscommonality; and adjusting drawing related parameters so that at leastthe preferential display character out of the plurality of characters islocated in a predetermined area of a display image.
 2. Thecomputer-readable non-transitory medium storing the program according toclaim 1, wherein the judging involves judging whether there iscommonality in movement among plurality of non-specific characters,which are the plurality of characters other than the specific character,when the movement is different from that of the specific character. 3.The computer-readable non-transitory medium storing the programaccording to claim 1, wherein the judging involves judging whether thereis the commonality on the basis of moving directions among thenon-specific characters of which moving directions are not similar tothat of the specific character.
 4. The computer-readable non-transitorymedium storing the program according to claim 3, wherein the judginginvolves judging whether there is commonality on the basis of anevaluation that is based on movement of the specific character andmovement of the non-specific characters of which moving directions aresimilar to that of the specific character, and an evaluation that isbased on movement of the non-specific characters of which movingdirections are not similar to that of the specific character.
 5. Thecomputer-readable non-transitory medium storing the program according toclaim 4, wherein the judging involves judging whether there iscommonality on the basis of a first evaluation value constituted by avalue based on movement of the specific character and a value based onmovement of the non-specific characters of which moving directions aresimilar to that of the specific character, and a second evaluation valueconstituted by a value based on movement of the non-specific charactersof which moving directions are not similar to that of the specificcharacter.
 6. The computer-readable non-transitory medium storing theprogram according to claim 3, wherein the judging involves judgingwhether there is commonality on the basis of moving velocity of thespecific character and moving velocity of the non-specific characters.7. The computer-readable non-transitory medium storing the programaccording to claim 6, wherein the judging involves judging whether thereis commonality on the basis of a first evaluation value that is based onthe moving velocity of the specific character and the moving velocity ofthe non-specific characters of which moving directions are similar tothat of the specific character, and a second evaluation value that isbased on the moving velocity of the non-specific characters of whichmoving directions are not similar to that of the specific character. 8.The computer-readable non-transitory medium storing the programaccording to claim 6, wherein the judging uses velocity of each of theplurality of characters moving away from a predetermined point in thedisplay image, to judge whether there is commonality on the basis of afirst evaluation value that is based on the velocity of the specificcharacter and the velocity of the non-specific characters of whichmoving directions are similar to that of the specific character, and asecond evaluation value that is based on the velocity of thenon-specific characters of which moving directions are not similar tothat of the specific character.
 9. The computer-readable non-transitorymedium storing the program according to claim 1, wherein the adjustingincludes: a first adjusting that adjusts the drawing related parametersso that all of the plurality of characters are located in thepredetermined area; and a second adjusting that adjusts the drawingrelated parameters so that at least the preferential display characteris located in the predetermined area in the case when all of theplurality of characters cannot be located in the predetermined areaafter the adjustment of the drawing related parameters by the firstadjusting.
 10. The computer-readable non-transitory medium storing theprogram according to claim 1, wherein when one of the non-specificcharacters is determined as the preferential display character, thedetermining involves determining the preferential display character bycomparing values based on the movement of the plurality of non-specificcharacters.
 11. The computer-readable non-transitory medium storing theprogram according to claim 1, wherein the virtual world is athree-dimensional virtual space, the computer is caused to furtherexecute calculating a display position of a character when thethree-dimensional virtual space is displayed using a display device, andthe adjusting involves adjusting the drawing related parametersreferring to the display position calculated by the calculating.
 12. Thecomputer-readable non-transitory medium storing the program according toclaim 1, wherein the adjusting involves adjusting the drawing relatedparameters so that the preferential display character is located in apredetermined area, that is set in a position including the center ofthe entire display image, and is smaller than the entire display image.13. The computer-readable non-transitory medium storing the programaccording to claim 1, wherein the specifying involves specifying aleading character in game progress as the specific character, on thebasis of the predetermined conditions.
 14. The computer-readablenon-transitory medium storing the program according to claim 1, whereinthe specifying involves specifying the specific character on the basisof a positional relationship of the plurality of characters in thevirtual world.
 15. The computer-readable non-transitory medium storingthe program according to claim 14, wherein the specifying involvesspecifying the specific character on the basis of a positionalrelationship of the plurality of characters in a progress route of thegame.
 16. The computer-readable non-transitory medium storing theprogram according to claim 1, wherein the computer is caused to furtherexecute excluding a character under a predetermined state in the gameprocessing, from adjustment targets by the adjusting.
 17. Thecomputer-readable non-transitory medium storing the program according toclaim 16, wherein the performing involves performing game processingincluding movement of a plurality of characters in the virtual world inresponse to operation by a player, and the excluding involves excludinga character that cannot be operated by the player, from the adjustmenttargets by the adjusting.
 18. The computer-readable non-transitorymedium storing the program according to claim 1, wherein the computer iscaused to further execute detecting a state of the game which requirespreferential display of the specific character, and the determiningincludes: a first determining that determines the preferential displaycharacter according to the judgment result by the judging when the statewhich requires preferential display of the specific character is notdetected by the detecting, and a second determining that determines thespecific character as the preferential display character when the statewhich requires preferential display of the specific character isdetected by the detecting.
 19. The computer-readable non-transitorymedium storing the program according to claim 18, wherein the detectinginvolves detecting the state which requires preferential display of thespecific character when the specific character is within a predeterminedrange from a goal of the game.
 20. The computer-readable non-transitorymedium storing the program according to claim 1, wherein the computer iscaused to further execute: drawing the virtual world according to thedrawing related parameters; and outputting an image drawn by the drawingso that the image is displayed by the display device.
 21. A systemcomprising at least one processor, the processor is configured toexecute: performing game processing including movement of a plurality ofcharacters in a virtual world; specifying one character out of theplurality of characters as a specific character, on the basis ofpredetermined conditions; judging whether there is commonality inmovement of a plurality of non-specific characters, which are theplurality of characters other than the specific character; determiningthe specific character as a preferential display character if thejudging does not judge that there is commonality, and determines atleast one of the non-specific characters as a preferential displaycharacter if the judging judges that there is commonality; and adjustingdrawing related parameters so that at least the preferential displaycharacter out of the plurality of characters is located in apredetermined area of a display image.
 22. A method for a computer toexecute: performing game processing including movement of a plurality ofcharacters in a virtual world; specifying one character out of theplurality of characters as a specific character, on the basis ofpredetermined conditions; judging whether there is commonality inmovement of a plurality of non-specific characters, which are theplurality of characters other than the specific character; determiningthe specific character as a preferential display character if it is notjudged that there is commonality in the judging, and determining atleast one of the non-specific characters as a preferential displaycharacter if it is judged that there is commonality in the judging; andadjusting drawing related parameters so that at least the preferentialdisplay character out of the plurality of characters is located in apredetermined area of a display image.
 23. An information processingdevice configured to execute: performing game processing includingmovement of a plurality of characters in a virtual world; specifying onecharacter out of the plurality of characters as a specific character, onthe basis of predetermined conditions; judging whether there iscommonality in movement of a plurality of non-specific characters, whichare the plurality of characters other than the specific character;determining the specific character as a preferential display characterif the judging does not judge that there is commonality, and determinesat least one of the non-specific characters as a preferential displaycharacter if the judging judges that there is commonality; and adjustingdrawing related parameters so that at least the preferential displaycharacter out of the plurality of characters is located in apredetermined area of a display image.